It's Christmas Time!

Yes, I've been absent for a very long time, I know. But I haven't had many things to write about until now. Tomorrow Christophe and I are leaving to go back to the US to spend Christmas with my family. I'm really excited especially since last year we weren't able to go home because of the cost. And even better is that it's looking like it will be a white Christmas! In Besançon it's been snowing non-stop for a couple days and there's about a foot of snow on the ground! It's so pretty! We visited the marché de Noel yesterday and it's by far better when there's snow. It makes it much more festive. It's been a calm Christmas because we haven't been able to travel anywhere. Going to the states is the big voyage of the season. Last year we visited several Christmas markets in Strasbourg and even in Germany but this year we just haven't had the time.
Here are some pictures we took this weekend:

Our balcony covered in snow!

Centre ville Besançon

the Christmas Market

Vin chaud? Yes please!

But unfortunately this will be a sad Christmas because my grandmother passed away a couple weeks ago which was a huge shock to everyone. It was very unexpected and everyone in the family is very sad. We're going to have a rememberance dinner while I'm home since I can't make it to the funeral. She will be missed.
RIP Grandma
I wish I could have said goodbye..

Updates

Yes, I've been really bad with updating the blog. I haven't found anything really interesting to write about and I'm also pretty busy at the moment (except on Sundays). So the weather has turned officially crappy here. Rain almost every day with cloudy skies, so it's not really the most wonderful time of the year. I'm excited for Christmas time because there will be lights, decorations, vin chaud!, chestnuts and Christmas markets! I love Christmas in France but I'm even more excited to be spending Christmas in the US this year with the family and Christophe. The last time I was home for Christmas was 2 years ago and it seems like soo long ago.

We're also moving out of this apartment in 2 weeks and are still technically looking for a new one. I think that we've decided on one that is much farther from centre ville and is a tad smaller than the apartment we have now. But, it's in great condition (it's only a year old) and theres' a balcony and very few neighbors. However, it's across from a lycée (high school) so hopefully by 6pm all will be calm. One thing in life that I can't stand is teenagers. lol and now we might be living across from about 1000 of them. But it's still not definite.

I've been working a lot of hours lately (as I noticed in my last paycheck, I was very happy) and my paycheck should be even better for this month. That means, lots of gifts for everyone at Christmas. And most importantly, a large payment on my student loans for December! lol

After browsing over new phones for months, I finally treated myself to one that day I got paid because hey, it's been 2 years and I'd like a cooler, more high-tech phone. No, I didn't buy an i-Phone but its a touch phone and I feel very professional with it (and maybe a little snobby too).

Thanksgiving is also only about 10 days away but I'll be celebrating it on December 5th at a friend's place. I wish we didn't have to postpone it because it won't feel like a real Thanksgiving. But I'm really happy that I'll be celebrating with friends this year.

Sluggish!

Ca y est!
Summer is officially over. The morning are at freezing temperatures and our apartment doesn't heat enough to keep up with the sudden cold temperatures. It literally went from one week to temperatures in the 70s, to a drop into the 40s and 50s! I don't think that I'm really looking forward to winter as I never am. By January/February I tend to get really depressed. It's almost systematic. But this year, I should be working a lot of hours and seeing a lot of people and getting out of the apartment a lot. This wasn't so much the case last year. Christophe is almost always busy planning his classes so it can get a little lonely. Last year it was the same with his concours. However, my job right now is really slow. Maximum, I have worked 15 hours during the week. Then most weeks I work around 10 hours. This wouldn't be so bad if I had a fixed monthly salary. Unfortunately, I get paid by the hour. I'm anxious to start making a real salary and to be busy. I enjoy my job but so far my classes don't start until 4pm or 5pm which is a little late. The rest of the day I don't have much to do. For example, today I woke up at almost 11:30am! Just like back in college. I hate sleeping that late, but I guess that's what happens when you're day is empty. However, I'm very proud of myself because this year I've been consistently going to salsa dancing classes and also to the pool. At least I'm doing something regularly.

Halloween is also in 10 days so I'm really excited about that! We're having a party here on Halloween night and it's mandatory costumes! I'm going to bake a lot of traditional sweets and try to make a punch. My mom sent me a package with some decorations inside so that will be cool as well. I'm so excited! It's been so long since I've celebrated Halloween. I think it was senior year in college. :( I'll be sure to post a bunch of pictures.

And lastly, Christophe and I are going home for Christmas!! I'm so excited! I didn't get to go home last year because I couldn't afford it but this year is a totally different story! I'll miss New Year's eve though because I'll be on a plane. It was 200€ cheaper to fly back on the 31st than on the 1st. Oh well, we'll have a celebration on the plane!

Buon Natale!

Merry Christmas everyone!

We're back from Rome and we had a wonderful time! Beautiful weather, no lines, it was the perfect week to visit Rome. Here are a few pictures from our trip:

The Colosseum at Night

The Pantheon


St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican

Trevi Fountain

The Roman Forum

Inside the Colosseum

The Colosseum and The Arc of Constantine

Outside the Colosseum

The Sistine Chapel Ceiling

And last but not lest, a giant Christmas Tree!

The Countdown to Rome!

This Christmas is going to be different from past ones.
One reason is that this will be the first Christmas ever that I haven't spent with my family. Because of my constant fiancial issues and that of my parent's, it wasn't really possible to come home this year without putting another $600 on my credit card. I don't want to deal with that later on. So I decided to do a mini-voyage au lieu de coming home. Of course I'm very upset about not spending Christmas with my family but due to other reasons I'm also a little relieved.

So, Christophe and I decided to do a little trip to Rome for a few days before Christmas. We found a great deal through EasyJet.Com. We booked a trip from December 21st-24th, including flight and hotel stay at a 3-star hotel for only 200€!! Probably 1/3 of the price of a ticket back to the US.

It's not Christmas at home that I look forward to every year but I guess Rome isn't too bad either.

I can't wait!

Sunday in Freiburg and Colmar!

Hi everyone! Yesterday Christophe and I spent the day at two Christmas Markets. The first in Freiburg, Germany and the second in Colmar! Since we are so close to the German border we decided to take a trip to Freiburg since I've never been there. The Christmas Market wasn't exceptionnal but I thought the city was beautiful so I took as many pictures as possible. It was fun being in Germany for a few hours. The streets of Freiburg all have this strange canal-ish system on the edge of the roads. It's really cool looking.

Since we finished the Freiburg Christmas market early, we decided to go to Colmar which was only a half hour away. Much more impressive! The decorations were beautiful and it was twice as big! Here are my pictures.

The Christmas Season Has Officially Begun!

The first thing I saw before I turned on the lights of my apartment tonight was this:

This crazy house and their flashing Christmas lights! Ahhh! Is it just me or is this going a little too far? I'm all for a few lights around a bush or two or outlining your house with lights but really..this is just too much. I don't even need to decorate my own apartment with this scene outside of my window. They already did it for me.

But in keeping with the theme of the post..Christmas time, here are some pictures of the Besançon Christmas Market happening all month long.This year they have a Quebec theme which explains the weird sentence.

Like any Christmas Marché (Market) in France you can buy a variety of foods and gifts including spiced, hot wine; churros, gaufres, marrons chauds ( chestnuts). Gifts including clothing, house hold objects, hand made toys, wine and regional foods. Besançon is known for not having one of the better Christmas markets. In the region, Montbéliard is the winner. It's about 10 times the size of the Besançon market and has so much more to offer.

This weekend I might be doing a day-trip to Freiburg, Germany to see their Christmas Market. I love Christmas time!